Here we go again with
"PatF isn't popular / isn't a real presence in Disney."
So,
@Californian Elitist already gave us plenty of videos of Tiana's presence...
... let's recap them:
- Tiana had her own M&G spot off of Liberty Square as well as appearing in Princess Fairytale Hall.
- Tiana's animation launches the very popular HEA.
- Tiana and friends are heavily featured in the Castle Stage Show (Friendship Faire).
- Tiana had a dessert party on the Riverboat.
- Tiana shows up in Festival of Fantasy parade and almost every castle-park parade throughout the world
- Tiana appears in Fantasmic! (both coasts)
- Tiana was going to be featured in the now-scrapped Reflections resort
- PatF was used in Sorcerers of the Kingdom.
- PatF is featured in Port Orleans resort.
- Tiana is part of the Disney Princesses 'brand'.
- Tiana got her own restaurant on the Cruise line where she appears (walkabout M&G) and performs. Plus a PatF lounge. [ WDW... bring that to Orlando! <shakes fist at WDW> ]
- Dr. Facilier is almost always part of any villain crew that shows up: Halloween Party stage show, parade, and fireworks; club evil; etc...
Now let's address the claim that her movie was a flop...
Define "flop." Is it any loss in the theatrical window, or a giant loss?
Going by movie-accounting, as a general rule of thumb:
1. Film budget is usually 50% more than as is stated because the known budget doesn't include advertising and administrative costs of the studio.
2. Box Office take is only 50% than what is advertised because the studio shares the BO with the theaters.
So, PatF's budget was $105M, so, with advertising, was really $157M. The film's worldwide BO was $267, so, Disney got $134M. That's a loss of $23M.
So, yea, a flop in that there was a loss in the theatrical window, but... not a giant flop.
The film has a life after the theatrical run: PPV, Premium Cable, DVD, Cable, Broadcast, Streaming. Each window brings in more money. Then there's merchandise. Then there's synergy with The Disney Princesses(tm) and Disney Parks. Tiana becomes much beloved by Disney fans, especially girls of color. She's popular in the parks, resorts, and cruises (see above). PatF more than made up for the theatrical deficit and was a financial win in the end.
Is she less deserving than Rapunzel for a ride? Rapunzel lost more money than PatF did in its theatrical run. Winnie-the-Pooh (2011) had an even bigger loss. Maybe we should just rip out his ride then for being such a big flop?
One more thing to consider if you think PatF isn't profitable for the parks: Y'all hate Chapek, right? Y'all think he's a bottom line cheapskate, right? Do you think he would sign off on all the Tiana M&G, stage appearances, parades, and restaurants if Tiana wasn't a draw? Do you think over the past years (way before the Splash announcement) that he was promoting prime placement for Tiana at a financial loss? If you think that, you don't hate him enough!!